Fireworks, Pride and festivals fill Metro Vancouver’s B.C. Day long weekend

Metro Vancouver will host fireworks, parades, festivals and professional sports throughout the B.C. Day long weekend.

Vancouver’s city-funded Summer Lights fireworks display is set for Friday at sundown at English Bay Beach Park. City council approved $2 million for the one-night show after Celebration of Light was cancelled. Large crowds are expected in the West End, English Bay and downtown, and organizers advise against driving.

The Vancouver Pride Parade begins at 1 p.m. Sunday on Pacific Boulevard outside B.C. Place and heads west to Howe Street. Davie Street will have closures from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. for the Davie Village Pride Festival. The Powell Street Festival runs Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Oppenheimer Park, with food vendors, artisans, community groups and live performances.

Celebrate BC events are planned Saturday at Rocky Point Park in Port Moody and Monday at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam, including the advertised wild salmon barbecue. West Vancouver’s Harmony Arts Festival begins Friday and runs to Aug. 9, while White Rock’s 75th annual Sea Festival runs Friday through Sunday. AniRevo Vancouver and Surrey’s Sanjh Festival are also scheduled, along with Jamaica Day Festival on Sunday in Hawthorne Rotary Park.

On the sports calendar, the Vancouver Whitecaps host LAFC Saturday at B.C. Place. The Vancouver Canadians play Spokane from Friday through Sunday; Vancouver FC hosts Atlético Ottawa in Langley on Saturday; and the Vancouver Bandits host the Winnipeg Sea Bears on Sunday.